Gamescom 2014: P.T. Is SH? Count Me IN!

Posted on August 13, 2014 by geelw

I’d have to say the biggest new game news out of Gamescom was the surprise reveal of a collaboration between game creator Hideo Kojima, writer/director Guillermo Del Toro and actor Norman Reedus in the form of an all-new horror game called Silent Hills (currently) for the PlayStation 4. There’s a playable teaser (dubbed “P.T.”) up on PSN* as I type this and it seems that some players aren’t getting that it’s NOT supposed to be a demo of the FINAL game, but a teaser of what’s to come and may change entirely from what’s there. Then again, given the amusingly screechy reaction from YouTube user SoapyWarpig (the first person to discover what this mysterious P.T. was, congratulations, by the way!), I’m betting a lot of fans of that particular horror franchise will be plunking down some money towards a PlayStation 4 if they haven’t gotten one yet.

*Note: P.T. is a bit “tricky” to find on the PS Store if you’re just looking for it on your phone/tablet, laptop or desktop. However, if you log into your PSN account and use the search bar (type in PT), you’ll get sent to the demo page and all you need to is download away and get to playing. I think the jump scare stuff in that first video is funny because it might be Kojima poking fun at the endless stream of “let’s watch random guys and gals freak out!” videos that litter YouTube for every horror game these days. I found it more unsettling and bizarre than actually fly out of my chair frightening. Now, to find out if this is another PlayStation-only game or a timed exclusive that’s going to pop up on other consoles and/or PC at some point…

Gamescom 2014: Bloodborne and Until Dawn: Two More System Sellers For Sony? Could Be…

Posted on August 12, 2014 by geelw

FromSoftware’s still in progress PS4 exclusive, Bloodborne finally gets a more gameplay focused trailer at Sony’s big media event and certainly looks fantastic. I actually got a Nightmare Creatures meets more deliberately paced Devil May Cry meets third-person Darkwatch vibe from this trailer, but I’m kind of nuts. Anyway, this one goes on the 2015 list. One more game for the backlog, whee!

Another work in progress, this time by Supermassive games, Until Dawn also looks pretty darn scary and cool, although it’s a different sort of game entirely. Clearly inspired by horror movies and a bit of classic adventure gaming, this tale of eight people meeting up at a mysterious shack in the mountains looks to give players a few choices in spinning fate’s wheel. Granted, I’m betting odds are slim everyone survives (what’s a horror game or film without a few demises?), but the replay value could be incredible if it’s more than a simple slasher story. Eight Little Indians getting it in so many ways is indeed intriguing…

Gamescom 2014: Why Tomb Raider As An Xbox One Exclusive Is A Lousy Move…

Posted on August 12, 2014 by geelw

One: Tomb Raider got its start at a multiplatform game (PlayStation, Sega Saturn and PC), allowing many millions of gamers to see what original development team Core Design had created. While (very) dated by today’s standards, the innovation on a few technical fronts, a strong female lead character and the game paying homage to everything from Prince of Persia to the Indiana Jones movies made it an instant smash worldwide. Clamping the new game onto ONE system “forever” is to me, a mistake that’s going to result in lower sales for the new game unless there’s guarantee people will buy an Xbox One because of the new game. It’s likely in some cases, but I’d bet an old penny that any console sales are absolutely nowhere near what both Tomb Raider and Tomb Raider II did for PlayStation sales back when both games were released.

In my years in retail, there have been a handful of games I’ve seen people slap down money to buy a console for and the first three Tomb Raider games are on that list. Granted, TR III was a bit problematic on a few fronts (and how!), but crazy difficulty aside, it still sold systems… Continue reading →

Resident Evil Makes A Return In 2015 For “Old” & New Consoles, PC

Posted on August 5, 2014 by geelw

One of the MOST requested (if not THE most requested) Capcom games fans have wanted to see remade for HD consoles has been the original Resident Evil and it looks as if those rabid folk are getting their wish granted and in a big way. Well, provided you own a PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One or a decent gaming PC. Capcom is set to release a beefed-up HD version of the 2002 GameCube remake of the 1996 original as a digital-only purchase.

That particular version improved the visuals and added many changes to the old game and is considered by some (and me, of course) to be the definitive version of the classic survival horror/action game. Featuring traditional or direct control schemes, 1080p support on next-gen consoles (PS4, Xbox One and of course, PC) and all the content from the 2002 game intact, this could be the definitive remake that also introduces new fans to the long-running series.

Unfortunately, there’s no word of a Wii U version, which is unusual given the 2002 game was made for a Nintendo console. Of course, the Wii U’s sales and Capcom perhaps realizing that they’d probably spend more money on that version than they’d make back means chances are slim we’ll see this on Nintendo’s latest console. It could also be the download size issue and the cost of getting this onto a disc release (and selling a set amount of physical copies) also mucking things up a bit.

That’s show business, kids – but Wii U and Wii U game sales need a nice jump upwards so publishers see the system is worth getting games like this on automatically. Granted, the console IS indeed getting a bunch of excellent titles this year and next… but this doesn’t look like it will be one of them unless something magical happens and it arrives (with some nice GamePad enhancements in tow).

As always, we shall see… we shall see. For now however, this one’s going to be played by plenty of people who didn’t buy a Game Cube but have always wanted to get their paws on a controller and experience Evil in a whole new way.

SDCC 2014: Mad Max: Fury Road: It’s Miller Time Again (Hardy Har-Har)…

Posted on July 27, 2014 by geelw

Well, well, well. it looks as if George Miller is back in the creative chair with this reboot that doesn’t need Mad Mel at all to look pretty action-packed and dare I say… “essential” to some extent. It seems like practical effects are in play for the most part (a good thing), and that offbeat sense of violent humor is intact from the previous Mad Max films. For those griping about the lack of Mr. Gibson, just give it a rest until you see the film next year or at least read a review or two before you put that foot down too hard. I say the man’s too old to be the lead here and he’s box office poison to some people thanks to his outside work views on certain things that can’t be separated fully from anything he does on screen. Besides (and this is the important thing), Tom Hardy is a fine enough substitute as an action hero, especially if this one’s sequel-ready for a few installments and he wants to come back.

SDCC 2014: IDW Gets All Nostalgic & Modern On You With A Slew of New Titles

Posted on July 26, 2014 by geelw

As you can see, IDW is certainly going all out with these new titles set to arrive in 2014 and 2015. I’m not a huge a fan of these sorts of comics as I used to be, but the title Star Trek/Planet of the Apes: Primate Directive made me laugh for a bit longer than expected, so I’ll have to peek at a few issues when it launches. That Edward Scissorhands book has my attention for the art style, as I’m a fan of the film, so again, I’ll be checking out a few issues over time. I was probably the only person my age who wasn’t terminally obsessed with the Garbage Pail Kids, so I’m a bit ambivalent about this new book. That said, I know fans of those old trading cards are grinning like mad at this announcement.

Angry Birds Transformers? Eek. Yeah, yeah… both are hugely popular franchises, but I’m of the mind that time-eating games like AB should stay in that realm and not cross streams with other media (although the multiple millions made in AB merchandising outside games proves me incorrect). Finally, Orphan Black seems like a fine enough choice for a comic series, but I’d prefer to see the show as the show and not need to dive into other media unless it’s going places the show hasn’t by exploring side stories for each of the clones. Of course, that would mean I’d need to buy some issues or a collection at some point down the road. In other words, I guess IDW will be seeing some of my money at some point in the not too distant future…

No Man’s Sky: Hello Games’ Will Be Your Favorite Developer Soon, I’ll Bet…

Posted on June 30, 2014 by geelw

As soon as I saw images and movies of No Man’s Sky, I had to add Hello Games to the top of my rather long favorite developers list. This small team of talented folk aren’t strangers to game development, having knocked out a few fun games in the Joe Danger series for iOS mobile devices, PC, PSN and Xbox Live Arcade. No Man’s Sky is a massive departure from those fun and outrageous side-scrolling stunt titles, an open space action/simulation game that’s harder to describe until you see it in motion. And even then, there’s so much innovation going on here that it’s astounding to hear how the game came about and where it’s going. Check out the video above and marvel at how Hello’s Sean Murray describes how his dream cam is coming to reality (and a PlayStation 4 near you in 2015).

CE Week 2014: There May Be An Elio In Your Future (and Sooner Than You Think)…

Posted on June 27, 2014 by geelw

I think my eyebrow went up as soon as I saw the silver Elio (named after founder, engineer and CEO Paul Elio) tucked into its comfortably tight space at CE Week because I thought it was yet another electric car trying to capture some of that Tesla thunder. Of course, my eyebrow did a back flip when I found out it wasn’t a car at all, but more like a very sturdy American made gas-powered single door, two seat tri-wheeler that’s coming sometime next year for the ridiculous price of $6,800. Yeah, you read that correctly.

As an affable Joel Sheltrown, Elio’s VP of Governmental Affairs walked myself and The Other View’s Terry Lewis through his pitch, my initial wariness about the Elio vaporized as I realized that the company was trying to revolutionize the transportation market not with a luxury model only a few could afford, but an affordable ride for the masses that’s going to solve quite a few modern problems for almost anyone who wants one… Continue reading →

E3 2014: Focus Home Interactive Wants You To Focus On These Two Upcoming Games…

Posted on June 27, 2014 by geelw

Focus Home Interactive has two big games coming for PC and next-generation consoles and if this fourteen minutes of gameplay from the upcoming game STYX: Master of Shadows isn’t getting you grinning at the possibilities of just how cool it is to play that nasty little goblin assassin, I have not a clue what will get your interest piqued. This one’s coming later this summer and it’s great to see third party games like this and others filling up the PS4 and Xbox One library until the big first-party games roll out around the holidays and beyond.

On the even more intense front, fans of Games Workshop’s Warhammer 40,000 will be more than thrilled to see Space Hulk finally making a welcome return as a first-person shooter in the upcoming Space Hulk: Deathwing, coming from developer Streum On Studio. While all you get here is some in engine footage and not actual first-person gameplay with whatever HUD will (or won’t) be onscreen, Epic’s Unreal 4 engine is certainly making what you do see look pretty incredible and Streum On definitely has some talent Check out the handful of screenshots below for more of what to expect and keep an eye on both of these games, I say…

E3 2014: Paradox on the PS4! A Game Changer If It’s Done With Care…

Posted on June 24, 2014 by geelw

I’d missed out on the big news that Paradox Interactive would be making and publishing future games for the PlayStation 4 as well as PC, but I’m glad I saw this Magicka 2 trailer because it’s hilarious and made me smile even more because PS4 owners will get to see how much fun this adventure/action RPG is soon enough. I was kind of hoping the game would also appear on the Vita, but we’ll see what Paradox comes up with down the road, I suppose. I know it’ll be interesting to see if some of their more complex strategy titles make the transition to the PS4 and as far as the other issue of Paradox’s PC games often being a bit buggy upon release, I’m gathering they’re going to be working very hard to keep that from being a big issue on the console front. Fingers are crossed here on the latter…